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GHG Emissions Reductions

Safety & Environment

GHG Emissions Reductions

We are committed to reducing our carbon footprint and firmly support efforts by local, state, and federal agencies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We have reduced our carbon emissions by 51% since 2005. Sixty percent of Con Edison’s annual steam production comes from co-generation, which lowers emissions by one million tons of carbon dioxide, CO2, per year. We continue to report voluntarily to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on our efforts to lower emissions of sulfur hexafluoride, SF6, from our electrical equipment, and we worked with Electric Power Research Institute to develop a new SF6 leak sealing technique. We are a founding partner in the EPA’s Natural Gas STAR Methane Challenge Program with the aim of reducing methane emissions. We work with experts and seek out new methane leak detection technology to enhance the efforts of our leak survey crews. As part of our ongoing efforts, we continue to accelerate the replacement of leak prone pipe and respond to the vital warning signals provided by our residential methane detectors.

We are installing smart meters in our service area, providing the ability to optimize energy usage and improve efficiency which helps lower carbonemissions.

Con Edison, Inc. Direct GHG Emissions - Scope 1 (thousand metric tons CO2e)

8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
2005
0
1,944
404
3,591
2006
1,037
1,418
397
3,121
2007
1,163
999
392
3,419
2008
1,777
615
385
3,196
2009
2,177
416
376
3,004
2010
2,051
247
373
3,302
2011
2,592
184
368
2,829
2012
2,666
179
346
2,782
2013
2,611
171
293
2,898
2014
2,769
164
283
2,757
2015
2,789
132
276
2,776
2016
2,880
107
267
2,719
2017
2,958
83
259
2,673
2018
2,905
75
250
2,743
2019
3,066
83
239
2,585
  • Avoided Emissions Compared to 2005 Baseline
  • SF₆ Emissions
  • Methane Emissions
  • CO₂ Emissions

Scope 1: Direct greenhouse gas emissions from CEI-owned or controlled sources (e.g., steam generating stations)

33.4 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent total emission avoided since 2005

• We have reduced our carbon footprint by 51 percent since 2005 – the equivalent of taking 500,000 vehicles off the road

• Note: Emissions from electric generation at the Con Edison Development electric generating plants, which were sold in 2008, have been removed from the above data set.

INDIRECT EMISSIONS

Indirect emissions – Scope 2 (million metric tons CO₂e)

Other indirect emissions or Scope 3 total (million metric tons CO₂e)

2019

1.16

32.5

2018

1.24

35.0

2017

1.35

33.9

2016

1.32

41.1

2015

1.32

41.8

2014

1.09

40.9

2013

1.19

N/A

2012

1.11

N/A

2011

1.51

N/A

2010

1.37

N/A

2009

1.42

N/A

Scope 2: Indirect greenhouse gas emissions associated with delivering products to customers (e.g., electrical transmission losses)

Scope 3: Indirect greenhouse gas emissions associated with customers using CEI products (e.g., customers’ use of delivered gas)

Steam Environmental Efforts

We strive to provide customers with FDA-quality steam, of which 60% is co-generated. Because the steam is co-generated, customers can apply for points toward their Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification and increase their score in Energy Star’s portfolio manager. Our co-generated steam reduces carbon emissions by approximately 25% of what would have been otherwise emitted through traditional boilers—that’s equal to removing approximately 200,000 vehicles from the road every year.

Our customers also benefit from the advantages of steam being a centralized district heating system which reduces onsite emissions. These centralized investments benefit all customer buildings. The ability of the district system to aggregate a wide variety of customer load profiles also allows for a higher average efficiency than what can be achieved at a single location. All these benefits are reflected in the most recent NYC Local Law 97, where our district steam was identified as the lowest greenhouse gas emitting energy source per unit of energy delivered.

In alignment with the city’s and state’s commitments to significantly reduce greenhouse gases by 2050, we are evaluating all opportunities that could help lower our environmental footprint. We acknowledge that business as usual is not and cannot be the way of the future to achieve these goals, which is why we are taking a more forward-thinking approach, conducting research and evaluating opportunities for more efficient generation while leveraging existing and emerging technologies.

To continue operations and supporting our customers in a changing environment, Steam Operations has been proactive in several efforts, such as benchmarking with other district systems in cities that are leveraging their district energy networks to achieve their carbon reduction goals. Steam Operations has also established an initial list of carbon-reduction technologies to evaluate and determine the feasibility of implementation with the existing steam system. These technologies include:  alternative fuel sources, electrification via electric boilers, expanding and/or converting to hot water systems, wasted heat recovery sources, and other emission reduction technologies.

Steam Operations has also been an active member in discussions and studies as regulations and city and state plans evolve.

Energy Efficiency Customers' Emissions

Please refer to the Energy Efficiency section under Customer & Community.

Reduction of SF6 Emissions

In accordance with a 1999 memorandum of understanding between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Con Edison, we agreed to reduce our emissions of SF6 gas (sulfur hexafluoride) by 5% annually from our 1996 baseline. In 2019, we released about 97% less SF6 than in 1996, well ahead of our commitment to the EPA. SF6 is a nontoxic, nonflammable greenhouse gas, with a warming potential more than 22,000 times higher than carbon dioxide, that can remain in the atmosphere for up to 3,200 years. There is no viable alternative to SF6, which is a highly efficient insulating medium and arc extinguisher used throughout the energy industry in different types of equipment, including high-voltage breakers and gas-insulated switchgear. Limiting emissions will contribute to a cleaner environment and help to reduce global warming. 

Con Edison highly values environmental excellence. While we have greatly reduced our emissions in the past decade, we are striving to continue to reduce our emissions even lower. Our goal for the next five years, starting in 2020, is to reduce our emissions by 500 pounds each year. This is a rate of more than 5% annually from the current levels.

To reduce SF6 emissions we use varying programs and a dedicated team to address leaking equipment in a timely matter. We have several targeted programs to replace or retire SF6 equipment, including circuit breakers, automatic ground switches and gas-insulated switchgear. Also, the dedicated team constantly monitors the emissions of all equipment daily using a tracking software program to enable quick and efficient repairs of trouble equipment. The team then uses best management practices, including innovative new leak sealing techniques to make the necessary repairs, as well as handling the gas properly with minimal emissions. 

Con Edison, Inc. GreenHouse Gas Emissions (million metric tons CO2e)

  • CO2on
  • CH4on
  • SF6on
  • OTHERon

Methane Challenge

In 2016, Con Edison joined 40 other local distribution companies as a founding partner in the EPA’s Natural Gas STAR Methane Challenge program. The goal of this program is to reduce methane emissions by replacing a significant number of natural gas mains. Our participation in this program was a natural extension of our participation in the Natural Gas STAR program, which we helped found in 1993.

The Natural Gas STAR Methane Challenge program  is  an  EPA/partner  company  collaboration  that promotes and tracks ambitious, transparent commitments to voluntarily reduce methane emissions beyond regulatory requirements.

Our goal is to replace 4% of our cast iron and unprotected steel mains (without cathodic protection) each year. Since entering this partnership, we have exceeded that replacement goal by more than six miles the first year, replacing 86.3 miles of main in 2017, which represented 4.3% of our total mains inventory. We also exceeded our 2018 goal of 85 miles by replacing 92 miles of mains, which represents 4.7% of the new total. And in 2019 we continued to exceed our goal by replacing 97 miles of cast iron and unprotected steel mains. (Specific details on how we would reach our goals were in our implementation plan, submitted to the EPA in 2016.) As a comparison of how we’ve successfully increased main replacement, between 2014 and 2016 we replaced an average of more than 70 miles of main annually.

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